On 26 October, prominent Chinese government expert on post-Soviet states Wang Xiaoquan warned that an escalation of Western sanctions against Belarus could disrupt China-EU transit routes. Paradoxically, Belarusian President Alexander Lukashenka needs to improve relations with the EU in...
Over two months have passed since the beginning of the largest peaceful protests in Belarusian history. The protesters show little willingness to give up and the authorities continue to rely on violence and intimidation, despite calls from the West...
Belarus now witnesses the largest protests since the 1990s following rigged presidential elections. Hundreds of thousands of people in different parts of the country have been coming out to protest for many days, calling for the release of political...
For more than a month, Alexander Lukashenka has been threatening to stop exporting Belarusian goods via Baltic states’ ports, and to halt their transit via the Baltics and Poland. Alongside other measures taken by him, such as in the...
Two months of ongoing Belarusian protests demanding Lukashenka to step down continue with no sign of abating. For 8th Sunday in a row, as many as 100,000 people thronged the center of Minsk – police deployed water cannons and arrested some...
Meeting Belarusian President Alexander Lukashenka on 14 September, Russian President Vladimir Putin announced that in the next year Belarus and Russia would hold joint exercises or similar events almost monthly. Belarusian special operations forces on 21 September joined the...
For almost 50 days Belarusians continue daily protests against the illegitimacy of the 6th presidential term of Lukashenka, including weekly Saturday’s Women Marches and massive Sunday rallies. This week, Belarusians flooded the streets after a “secret” inauguration ceremony on September 23,...
Peaceful protests in Minsk – Belarus Photo Digest
The Belarusian berry industry – Belarus photo digest
Transformation of Belarus is a marathon, not a sprint
Belarusians have surprised the world on many occasions since August 2020. No one would have dreamt that hundreds of thousands of people would be protesting on the streets of the capital Minsk for months. However, as a result of...
Lukashenka’s Chinese options
On 26 October, prominent Chinese government expert on post-Soviet states Wang Xiaoquan warned that an escalation of Western sanctions against Belarus could disrupt China-EU transit routes. Paradoxically, Belarusian President Alexander Lukashenka needs to improve relations with the EU in...
Why the West fails to make a difference in Belarus
Over two months have passed since the beginning of the largest peaceful protests in Belarusian history. The protesters show little willingness to give up and the authorities continue to rely on violence and intimidation, despite calls from the West...
Lukashenka’s Chinese options
On 26 October, prominent Chinese government expert on post-Soviet states Wang Xiaoquan warned that an escalation of Western sanctions against Belarus could disrupt China-EU transit routes. Paradoxically, Belarusian President Alexander Lukashenka needs to improve relations with the EU in...
Transit wars weaken both Belarus and the Baltics
For more than a month, Alexander Lukashenka has been threatening to stop exporting Belarusian goods via Baltic states’ ports, and to halt their transit via the Baltics and Poland. Alongside other measures taken by him, such as in the...
Post-election turmoil is taking a toll on the Belarusian economy
The breach of trust in the government since the disputed 9 August presidential election has already cost the Belarusian economy a lot. People are withdrawing deposits from banks, large manufacturing enterprises are going on strike, and IT companies are...
Belarus reluctantly reverses its security policies
Meeting Belarusian President Alexander Lukashenka on 14 September, Russian President Vladimir Putin announced that in the next year Belarus and Russia would hold joint exercises or similar events almost monthly. Belarusian special operations forces on 21 September joined the...
Lukashenka runs to Putin amid protests
On 22 August while meeting military personnel in Hrodna Province, President Alyaksandr Lukashenka announced that his opponents had — with the aim of bringing about a “colour revolution”— been attempting to divert his attention from the domestic situation by...
The best ever opportunity for Putin to intervene in Belarus?
On 18 August, president Alyaksandr Lukashenka convened his National Security Council with a focus on “external intervention” in the current protests in Belarus. He cited military threats on the “Western borders”, although a couple of weeks ago he had...
6th Annual ‘Belarusian Studies in the 21st Century’ Conference
The UCL School of Slavonic and East European Studies, the Ostrogorski Centre and the Francis Skaryna Belarusian Library and Museum invites to the Annual London conference on Belarusian Studies. The conference will take place on 18–19 February 2020 at...
Coronavirus pandemic in Belarus: many times more cases than in the official statistics
In the report for April-May 2020, based on the available data, I concluded that with a mortality rate from coronavirus as in neighbouring Poland Belarus would have nine times more deaths from coronavirus than official statistics indicate. In neighbouring...
6th Annual Conference ‘Belarusian Studies in the 21st Century’ – call for papers
UCL School of Slavonic and East European Studies, Ostrogorski Centre and the Francis Skaryna Belarusian Library and Museum invite paper proposals from established academics and doctoral researchers discussing various aspects of contemporary Belarusian studies. The conference will take place...
